2014 Hermitage Les Bessards

Winemaker Marco Beckmann recalls the 2023 growing season as fairly uneventful—until the massive heatwave at the end of August. “Arid conditions like this are terrible for young vines, as they cannot pick up sugar ripeness later on because they lose all their leaves,” he explained. Once the heatwave had passed, another significant challenge loomed: an anticipated 200 millimeters of rainfall within just a few hours, forecasted for Monday, September 18. “We basically had to ensure that most of the grapes were harvested by midday, as the rains were expected to hit in the afternoon. I remember the cold room and all the space outside it being literally full of grapes. We had to pick the grapes in an incredibly short period. All in all, we managed to harvest roughly 85% before the heavy rains,” Beckmann concluded. During my visit, I tasted 29 samples, and the 2022 vintage stood out as a success for Delas, delivering enticing results across all appellations without any misses. At the top of the quality pyramid, the Côte-Rôtie La Landonne, Hermitage Les Bessards and Hermitage Ligne de Crête Lieu-Dit Les Grandes Vignes are all gorgeous representations of their respective terroirs. Notably, alcohol levels for 2022 remain moderate, generally ranging between 12.5% and 13.5%. Early tastings of the 2023 barrel samples suggest a worthy successor to the 2022s, albeit slightly less concentrated and dense. However, the 2023s are distinguished by ample freshness and an expressive fruit profile.

Winemaker Marco Beckmann recalls the 2023 growing season as fairly uneventful—until the massive heatwave at the end of August. “Arid conditions like this are terrible for young vines, as they cannot pick up sugar ripeness later on because they lose all their leaves,” he explained. Once the heatwave had passed, another significant challenge loomed: an anticipated 200 millimeters of rainfall within just a few hours, forecasted for Monday, September 18. “We basically had to ensure that most of the grapes were harvested by midday, as the rains were expected to hit in the afternoon. I remember the cold room and all the space outside it being literally full of grapes. We had to pick the grapes in an incredibly short period. All in all, we managed to harvest roughly 85% before the heavy rains,” Beckmann concluded. During my visit, I tasted 29 samples, and the 2022 vintage stood out as a success for Delas, delivering enticing results across all appellations without any misses. At the top of the quality pyramid, the Côte-Rôtie La Landonne, Hermitage Les Bessards and Hermitage Ligne de Crête Lieu-Dit Les Grandes Vignes are all gorgeous representations of their respective terroirs. Notably, alcohol levels for 2022 remain moderate, generally ranging between 12.5% and 13.5%. Early tastings of the 2023 barrel samples suggest a worthy successor to the 2022s, albeit slightly less concentrated and dense. However, the 2023s are distinguished by ample freshness and an expressive fruit profile.

I sampled a diverse range of wines guided by winemaker Marco Beckmann, who joined Delas in 2022. Beckmann, previously associated with Paul Jaboulet Ainé, holds a degree in oenology from the Istituto Agrario San Michele all'Adige - Mach Foundation. Jacques Grange, the head winemaker at Delas for the past two decades, also joined for the tasting. Starting with the warmer 2020 and 2022 vintages, a strategic approach to fermentation involved partial stem inclusion, typically not exceeding 15%. Grange explains: “Up until then, we didn't feel the need to add stems, as Syrah provided sufficient tannins. However, in cooler and wetter years like 2021, we destemmed all our grapes to avoid the risk of greenness or dryness from unripe stems. In warm and dry vintages like 2020 or 2022, the small addition of ripe stems can impart a touch of freshness and aromatic complexity that enhances the wines.” Indeed, none of the sampled reds exhibit overt stemminess but rather emphasize purity of fruit and finesse. Notably, while partial new oak maturation persists, there has been a significant reduction compared to previous vintages. When oak is utilized, whether new or old, it's exclusively French, although experiments with Slavonian oak are underway for select white wines. Tasting the wines underscores Delas’ success in the challenging 2021 vintage, particularly with excellent offerings from Condrieu, Cornas and Hermitage. On the other hand, the bottlings from Côte-Rôtie, Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph are a little less enticing. Notably, in 2021, both the Hermitage Les Bessards and the Hermitage Ligne de Crête Lieu-dit Les Grandes Vignes weren’t produced, with all the fruit contributing to the delightful 2021 Hermitage Domaine des Tourettes. As for the 2022 vintage, the overall quality is high, with promising performances from the Côte-Rôtie La Landonne, Hermitage Les Bessards and Hermitage Ligne de Crête Lieu-dit Les Grandes Vignes.

Long-established and quite large, Delas Frères has been on a roll for a good decade or more, and the quality has improved since they moved to their new, state-of-the-art winery in the heart of Tain l’Hermitage just before the 2019 harvest. I consider the 2019s and 2020s to be the strongest sets of wines here. Especially the 2020s, which are impressively fresh and balanced across the board, with the energy to reward patience. The Hermitage bottlings are the winery's pride, and in recent vintages, they can be counted among the appellation's top wines.

Long-established and quite large, Delas Frères has been on a roll for a good decade or more, and the quality has improved since they moved to their new, state-of-the-art winery in the heart of Tain l’Hermitage just before the 2019 harvest. I consider the 2019s and 2020s to be the strongest sets of wines here. Especially the 2020s, which are impressively fresh and balanced across the board, with the energy to reward patience. The Hermitage bottlings are the winery's pride, and in recent vintages, they can be counted among the appellation's top wines.

Comparing 2019 to 2018, winemakers Claire Darnaud and Jacques Grange told me that “the 2019s have more power than the 2018s but also, often, even more lively character, and the tannins are extremely well-integrated.” The 2018s “will probably always look good,” Darnaud said, “while the 2019s have the material to age for a long time,” which reminds me of 2017 at its best.

Long-established and quite large, Delas Frères has been on a roll for a good decade or more, and the quality has improved since they moved to their new, state-of-the-art winery in the heart of Tain l’Hermitage just before the 2019 harvest. I consider the 2019s and 2020s to be the strongest sets of wines here. Especially the 2020s, which are impressively fresh and balanced across the board, with the energy to reward patience. The Hermitage bottlings are the winery's pride, and in recent vintages, they can be counted among the appellation's top wines.

Comparing 2019 to 2018, winemakers Claire Darnaud and Jacques Grange told me that “the 2019s have more power than the 2018s but also, often, even more lively character, and the tannins are extremely well-integrated.” The 2018s “will probably always look good,” Darnaud said, “while the 2019s have the material to age for a long time,” which reminds me of 2017 at its best.

The Delas team has finally moved into their new, hyper-modern and expansive winemaking facility, which sits in the heart of Tain l’Hermitage, surrounding the original cellars and home of Paul Jaboulet. It’s a stunning showcase operation built to the specifications of winemakers Jacques Grange and Claire Darnaud, with no expense spared, which was possible because Delas is a branch of the Rouzaud family’s Louis Roederer empire. The wines have been going from strength to strength for over a decade Darnaud and Grange described the 2017s as coming from “a strange season that started off fast, maybe too fast, and quickly turned cold.” Vine vigor slowed to a crawl, and then “it turned extremely hot, which kicked the vines back up to speed,” such that harvest began almost two weeks ahead of schedule. “The fruit was ripe and clean, but because it was so dry, the crop in many areas was very low and the grapes could be small.” While the 2017s definitely lead with their fruit, there’s a bedrock of tannins to them as well, which makes me think they’ll surprise people with their ability to reward some patience.

For Rhône fans whose tastes run to opulent, fruit-driven and forward wines 2017 should be right up their alley, Claire Darnaud told me. They fall well outside the 2010 or 2015 style of structure, she said, but they have more opulence than the 2012s, 2013s, 2014s and 2016s, placing them in a decidedly unique style for recent vintages. That said, the Delas 2017s are in no way lacking for energy, while they are definitely leading with their fruit. They display a suave interplay of richness and verve, with adequate tannins for aging positively into their second decade.

Claire Darnaud and Jacques Grange have crafted an impressive set of graceful wines from the 2016 vintage; in fact, they rival the outstanding collection produced here in 2015 but, predictably, in a more graceful and forward style. Claire calls the 2016s “wines that are exceptionally true to their origin, without too much ripeness to hide their character or too much tannin to make them require long aging to be expressive.” The past decade has seen this long-established grower/négociant’s wines steadily rise into the upper quality tier of the region, with the Hermitages Les Bessards and Côte-Rôtie La Landonne now consistently among the top bottlings of those appellations.

Claire Darnaud and Jacques Grange told me that “people who prefer 2010 over 2009 will probably prefer 2016 to 2015 for their energy and structure.” Darnaud pointed out that while the 2016s might come off less dense and rich than the 2015s “it will be a mistake to think that the wines won’t age well” as they have the balance to last into their second decade, “much like a lot of 2007s,” a vintage that many wrote off as overtly forward and not cellar-worthy. The 2016s are also more “classic in character and appellation-specific” than the 2015s, she said, “but the ‘15s will be less about the vintage in another ten years or so. Not now, though.” Construction of the new Delas facility in the center of Tain l’Hermitage continues slowly because of bureaucratic wrangling, resulting in delays (“this is France, after all,” Darnaud quipped.) The team has their fingers crossed that it will be ready for the 2018 harvest.

Winemakers Clair Darnaud and Jacques Grange told me that comparisons of 2015 to 2009 were fair, to a point, but "2015 has a lot more energy than '09." What makes the wines so intriguing, she told me, "is how well the tannins and acidity blend with the ripe fruit" where with the '09s "there's a danger that the richness of the fruit isn't supported so the wines can seem flat when you compare them to the '15s." Grange thinks that 2015 is likely "the best all-around vintage for red wines in the region" of this generation and thinks that they are destined for an extremely long life. But since the tannins are "well-wrapped by the fruit they might not ever close up." Still, both Grange and Darnaud think that anybody planning to open the wines any time soon is well-advised to give them a good decanting "because the fruit is very overt now."

These 2015s represent as solid a set of wines as I’ve yet tasted from Delas Frères, although it should be noted that their ascent to the upper tier of northern Rhône producers has been steady over the last decade. Owned since 1993 by the Champagne house Louis Roederer, this 160-year-old winery doesn’t lack for the capital to invest in quality and they aren’t afraid to do so either. The most dramatic example of their commitment is on display in the heart of Tain l’Hermitage, across the Rhône from their current home in Saint-Jean-de-Muzols, where construction has begun on a new, state-of-the-art winemaking facility at the original 19th-century cellar and mansion of Paul Jaboulet and his eponymous winery. It’s slated to be finished in time for the 2018 harvest, God and the French authorities willing. This will no doubt be a boon for wine tourism for a town that, for now, really has just one operational winery, the tiny Marc Sorrel cellar, plus the Large Cave de Tain headquarters on its far outskirts, on the way to the autoroute. An increasing number of tasting rooms, a very good wine bar, retail and dining options and, of course, the Valrhona factory’s theme park have opened in recent years but non-professional visitors looking to check out a winery have slim pickings compared to Ampuis or even Cornas or Mauves.

Winemakers Claire Darnaud and Jacques Grange told me that they’re confident that in their new digs they’ll be able to take their wines to an even higher level of quality as they’ll be able to work in a winery that they designed from the ground up. Grange told me that they are looking forward to being able to work more efficiently than they do today in Saint-Jean-de-Muzols and that lessons they’ve been compelled to learn ad hoc at the current winery have helped them figure out how to streamline their new facility. The intent is “for the wines to be handled as little as possible from grape to bottle,” as Darnaud put it. So much work and expense goes into a full year of growing, she added, “that to not respect it in the cellar would be a catastrophe.”

Claire Darnaud (co-winemaker with Jacques Grange) thinks the 2013s "will enjoy a very long life on their freshness." She says she wouldn’t start getting into them until well after the '14s, which "might not ever really close up, or at least not so much that they're not enjoyable to drink." The 2014s are fleshy, seamless and emphatically fruity in character, while the '13s, which I reviewed last year, show the tension and verve for aging.

Claire Darnaud (co-winemaker with Jacques Grange) thinks the 2013s "will enjoy a very long life on their freshness." She says she wouldn’t start getting into them until well after the '14s, which "might not ever really close up, or at least not so much that they're not enjoyable to drink." The 2014s are fleshy, seamless and emphatically fruity in character, while the '13s, which I reviewed last year, show the tension and verve for aging.

One-third new oak is now the maximum percentage used for any wine here at Delas, and that number really only applies to the big guns, meaning the Côte-Rôtie La Landonne and Hermitage Bessards. Speaking of oak, winemaker Claire Darnaud told me that there's a lot of experimenting going on with matching coopers to individual wines. "Some types of barrels brings stronger tannins that might not be necessary for wines like Hermitage or Cornas but good for, say, Crozes," she said, "so we're looking at the oak tannins and how they give structure and when it's a good or bad thing."

One-third new oak is now the maximum percentage used for any wine here at Delas, and that number really only applies to the big guns, meaning the Côte-Rôtie La Landonne and Hermitage Bessards. Speaking of oak, winemaker Claire Darnaud told me that there's a lot of experimenting going on with matching coopers to individual wines. "Some types of barrels brings stronger tannins that might not be necessary for wines like Hermitage or Cornas but good for, say, Crozes," she said, "so we're looking at the oak tannins and how they give structure and when it's a good or bad thing."

Claire Darnaud, who grew up just outside Tournon and Saint-Jean-de-Muzols and has been working alongside winemaker Jacques Grange since 2009, walked me through this year's set of wines as well as some examples from the outstanding 2010 vintage. "Two thousand twelve made wines that are expressive young," she told me, adding that one aspect she likes of this vintage is that "the sites are expressive of themselves without a lot of tannin to work through, like 2010 and 2005, or strong ripeness that can obscure the fruit, as with 2009 and 2003." Unfortunately production was down, yet again, which has put pressure on Delas' traditional markets, even as Asia, for one example, continues to increase its demand for northern Rhone wines. The good news about 2011 is the wines' vivacity, Darnaud told me, attributing that trait to the cool summer that helped the fruit maintain acid levels and slowed down the buildup of sugar. That said, Darnaud believes that with rare exception the wines are meant to be drunk sooner rather than later, "for their fresh fruit. They mostly don't have the concentration to age for a really long time."

Claire Darnaud, who grew up just outside Tournon and Saint-Jean-de-Muzols and has been working alongside winemaker Jacques Grange since 2009, walked me through this year's set of wines as well as some examples from the outstanding 2010 vintage."Two thousand twelve made wines that are expressive young," she told me, adding that one aspect she likes of this vintage is that "the sites are expressive of themselves without a lot of tannin to work through, like 2010 and 2005, or strong ripeness that can obscure the fruit, as with 2009 and 2003."Unfortunately production was down, yet again, which has put pressure on Delas' traditional markets, even as Asia, for one example, continues to increase its demand for northern Rhone wines.The good news about 2011 is the wines' vivacity, Darnaud told me, attributing that trait to the cool summer that helped the fruit maintain acid levels and slowed down the buildup of sugar.That said, Darnaud believes that with rare exception the wines are meant to be drunk sooner rather than later, "for their fresh fruit.They mostly don't have the concentration to age for a really long time."

After the incredible 2010 and 2009 vintages, 2011 "was an almost welcome break back to reality," according to winemaker Jacques Grange.By that he means that "the '11s are classic examples of place, not completely unlike '10 in that regard, and much finer than the massive '09s."One thing Grange likes in particular about the '11s is "the finishing sweetness of fruit," which makes them accessible already.He finds his 2010 wines to be putting on weight and gaining power now that they've been in bottle for a bit, and he believes that all but the most basic wines will soon be in a closed-up phase and "in need of being left to sleep."

After the incredible 2010 and 2009 vintages, 2011 "was an almost welcome break back to reality," according to winemaker Jacques Grange.By that he means that "the '11s are classic examples of place, not completely unlike '10 in that regard, and much finer than the massive '09s."One thing Grange likes in particular about the '11s is "the finishing sweetness of fruit," which makes them accessible already.He finds his 2010 wines to be putting on weight and gaining power now that they've been in bottle for a bit, and he believes that all but the most basic wines will soon be in a closed-up phase and "in need of being left to sleep."

Jacques Grange wondered whether the 2010 red wines would ever really shut down "because all the pieces are in harmony, with nothing that really needs to move aside or back to allow the other parts to come forward.Everything is synchronized."He couldn't say the same for 2009, which he describes as "a great vintage that will need some time to prove itself--at least until the tannins can resolve with the fruit."Grange added that he has been surprised by the power and richness of the 2010 white wines, which he said should prove to be longer agers than the hefty 2009s.

Jacques Grange wondered whether the 2010 red wines would ever really shut down "because all the pieces are in harmony, with nothing that really needs to move aside or back to allow the other parts to come forward.Everything is synchronized."He couldn't say the same for 2009, which he describes as "a great vintage that will need some time to prove itself--at least until the tannins can resolve with the fruit."Grange added that he has been surprised by the power and richness of the 2010 white wines, which he said should prove to be longer agers than the hefty 2009s.

According to winemaker Jacques Grange, "the 2007 southern Rhone wines are massive, powerful wines like nothing we've ever seen. They can sometimes be almost too much, though. They're easy to understand for sure, so it's kind of a beginner's vintage, I think." He added that he prefers wines that are vivacious and elegant, and that this style was almost impossible to make from the south in 2007." The northern Rhone in 2007 was a different story. "The year was extremely easy, with no surprises during the season or at harvest," he told me. "The wines are nicely expressive already but are also balanced to age. People who don't go for big, rich wines ought to be really pleased with them." (Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also recommended: 2008 Crozes-Hermitage Blanc Les Launes (86), 2007 Cotes du Rhone Saint Esprit (85), 2007 Gigondas Les Reignages (85), 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape Haute Pierre (85). Other wines tasted: 2007 Vacqueyras Domaine des Genets.

Jacques Grange told me that he prefers the relative elegance of 2007 to 2006. "But I'm a Burgundy man, literally, so I tend to value finesse over power," he explained. I have found that the Delas wines are easy to underestimate when young; a year or so of bottle aging almost inevitably brings more finesse as well as depth so I would be hesitant to open the 2006s when they hit the U. S. market. This is especially true for the 2006s that I tasted in bottle this year. Grange notes that "this is the case for 2006 in general but especially for Hermitage, which is by far the richest appellation of the north, a huge leap above the others. " Grange told me that he would absolutely avoid opening the 2005s, "as they are really just a set of components that need a lot of time to become wine. " He also told me that he thinks that 2007 in the south is the best vintage he's ever seen. "When we saw and tasted the fruit, we wanted to buy everything. " He is particularly fond of Condrieu in 2007, saying that "it's an exceptional vintage, especially for drinking young, with great richness and power. " Delas chose not to release a Cote-Rotie La Landonne from the 2007 vintage "because it just wasn't good enough to risk our clients' confidence," Grange told me. (Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also recommended: 2007 Cotes du Rhone Saint-Esprit (87).

Jacques Grange told me that he prefers the relative elegance of 2007 to 2006. "But I'm a Burgundy man, literally, so I tend to value finesse over power," he explained. I have found that the Delas wines are easy to underestimate when young; a year or so of bottle aging almost inevitably brings more finesse as well as depth so I would be hesitant to open the 2006s when they hit the U. S. market. This is especially true for the 2006s that I tasted in bottle this year. Grange notes that "this is the case for 2006 in general but especially for Hermitage, which is by far the richest appellation of the north, a huge leap above the others. " Grange told me that he would absolutely avoid opening the 2005s, "as they are really just a set of components that need a lot of time to become wine. " He also told me that he thinks that 2007 in the south is the best vintage he's ever seen. "When we saw and tasted the fruit, we wanted to buy everything. " He is particularly fond of Condrieu in 2007, saying that "it's an exceptional vintage, especially for drinking young, with great richness and power. " Delas chose not to release a Cote-Rotie La Landonne from the 2007 vintage "because it just wasn't good enough to risk our clients' confidence," Grange told me. (Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also recommended: 2007 Cotes du Rhone Saint-Esprit (87).

Winemaker Jacques Grange told me that while the 2006s will provide early-drinking pleasur and are balanced to age, they won't achieve the depth or complexity of his 2005s. This was borne out in my tasting, where the more serious 2005s displayed impressive power and structure while the 2006s were more straightforward and fruity. Grange, a Burgundy native who studied enology at Dijon, asserted again that his goal is to produce wines that emphasize finesse over power, telling me that "people forget that the best wines of the north have always been prized for their balance and complexity more than for their mass."

Winemaker Jacques Grange told me that while the 2006s will provide early-drinking pleasur and are balanced to age, they won't achieve the depth or complexity of his 2005s. This was borne out in my tasting, where the more serious 2005s displayed impressive power and structure while the 2006s were more straightforward and fruity. Grange, a Burgundy native who studied enology at Dijon, asserted again that his goal is to produce wines that emphasize finesse over power, telling me that "people forget that the best wines of the north have always been prized for their balance and complexity more than for their mass."

"Two thousand four is a vintage of balance, as is 2005, but 2005 has more richness and more power to go with it," winemaker Jacques Grange told me before presenting his impressive collection of wines from those two vintages. He likens 2005 to 1999 and insists that it's a vintage that must be held. "It's all structure and potential now," he explained. Grange reported lower than normal yields in 2004 for Delas' best sites and this is reflected in the wines, which are indeed balanced but also display impressive power. Grange, who is from Burgundy, responded to my comment on the elegant, almost Burgundian qualities of many of these wines by saying "I guess it's my fate. "(Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also recommended: 2004 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes (86). Other wines tasted: 2005 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes Blanc, 2004 Cornas Chante-Perdrix*, 2005 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes.

"Two thousand four is a vintage of balance, as is 2005, but 2005 has more richness and more power to go with it," winemaker Jacques Grange told me before presenting his impressive collection of wines from those two vintages. He likens 2005 to 1999 and insists that it's a vintage that must be held. "It's all structure and potential now," he explained. Grange reported lower than normal yields in 2004 for Delas' best sites and this is reflected in the wines, which are indeed balanced but also display impressive power. Grange, who is from Burgundy, responded to my comment on the elegant, almost Burgundian qualities of many of these wines by saying "I guess it's my fate. "(Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also recommended: 2004 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes (86). Other wines tasted: 2005 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes Blanc, 2004 Cornas Chante-Perdrix*, 2005 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes.

Winemaker Jacques Grange oversees a wide collection of wines for this large negociant and vineyard owner, but the impressive level of quality, especially at the upper end of the range, makes clear that he has no trouble consistently making highly expressive wines.Grange is able to offer informed opinions of vintages in the Northern Rhone owing to his work in appellations stretching from Cote-Rotie to Cornas.Vintage 2004, he says, brought uniform quality up and down the river, while 2003 "was simply surreal, with vines shut down all over the Rhone Valley.We got ripeness but often not maturity in this crazy year, and we had to harvest through all of the Northern Rhone virtually at once, starting on August 19th, one month earlier than usual."The successes here in 2003 owe largely to brutal selection that cut production levels dramatically.

Winemaker Jacques Grange oversees a wide collection of wines for this large negociant and vineyard owner, but the impressive level of quality, especially at the upper end of the range, makes clear that he has no trouble consistently making highly expressive wines.Grange is able to offer informed opinions of vintages in the Northern Rhone owing to his work in appellations stretching from Cote-Rotie to Cornas.Vintage 2004, he says, brought uniform quality up and down the river, while 2003 "was simply surreal, with vines shut down all over the Rhone Valley.We got ripeness but often not maturity in this crazy year, and we had to harvest through all of the Northern Rhone virtually at once, starting on August 19th, one month earlier than usual."The successes here in 2003 owe largely to brutal selection that cut production levels dramatically.

Delas harvested on the early side in 2003, and, according to director/enologist Jacques Grange, did not acidify its domain wines. Like so many of his colleagues in the Northern Rhone Valley, Grange carried out shorter macerations in 2003, with less pigeage and at lower temperatures. For example, the total cuvaison was just 12 days for Hermitage, as Grange did not want to extract vegetal or dry components. "But the grapes were clean, and we did not have to use more sulfur than usual," he added. Grange was buoyed by the way the wines were showing in November, but at the same time he worried aloud that they were almost too good to believe. "They're all presenting themselves well now, but some of this may be illusory. Some of these 2003s will be great but others not. "He expected to bottle most of the big reds in the first three months of 2005. During the difficult 2002 harvest, Grange did what he described as a draconian selection, keeping only the clean grapes-about 50% of total production. He vinified with the objective of making fruity, supple wines, then declassified all of the cuvees parcellaires into a limited line-up of basic bottlings-a strategy that more of his colleagues should have adopted in this difficult vintage. (Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland, CA) Also tasted: 2003 Saint-Joseph Saint-Epine Blanc*, 2002 Condrieu Galopine, 2003 Condrieu Galopine.

As evidence of its higher quality standards today, thisx000D house declassified most of its cuvees parcellaires into its basic offerings inx000D 2000 to protect the quality of these latter wines. According to director/enologist Jacques Grange, the crop load inx000D 2000 was a bit too heavy to make serious, concentrated wines. Two thousand one, he says, produced a morex000D structured set of wines with good aging potential, thanks in part tox000D significantly lower yields. Grapex000D sugars were a full degree higher across the board (typically 12%, vs. 11% inx000D the earlier vintage), and the skins were correspondingly riper as well. In fact, there were more polyphenols inx000D 2001, Grange added, but longer, hotter fermentations were needed to extractx000D what the skins had to give, a comment I heard at several other Northern Rhonex000D addresses in November. With elevage thex000D better 2001s are revealing themselves as complete wines, Grange noted. Grange has focused his attention on thex000D house's white wines in the past couple of vintages. In 2001, he adopted what he described as "a Champagnex000D approach," gently pressing 150 kilos of grapes to get 100 kilos of juice,x000D in an attempt to fashion wines with more aromatic purity and definition. (Maisons Marques & Domaines, Oakland,x000D CA) Also recommended: 2000 Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes, 2000 Saint-Joseph Les Challeys. Other wines tasted: 2001 Cotes dux000D Ventoux, 2000 Cotes du Rhone Saint-Esprit.

Director/enologist Jacques Grange initially felt the young 2000s were fine if a bit diluted by high yields, with the tannins not quite ripe enough. "Until September of this year I thought the red wines lacked concentration and structure compared to our region's wines, but now I find that they have good balance, finesse and purity," he explained. "And when you compare them to syrah from elsewhere around the world, they're not so bad." Still, Grange added, they will need earlier bottling than the '99s or '98s: the top '98s got an elevage of 26 months and the '99s 24 months, but the 2000s will be bottled after just 15 months. Grange finds the '98s especially true to their sites, while he considers the '99s the best vintage for the Northern Rhone since 1990. The house's top 1999 cuvees parcellaires showed spectacularly in November.

Director/enologist Jacques Grange initially felt the young 2000s were fine if a bit diluted by high yields, with the tannins not quite ripe enough. "Until September of this year I thought the red wines lacked concentration and structure compared to our region's wines, but now I find that they have good balance, finesse and purity," he explained. "And when you compare them to syrah from elsewhere around the world, they're not so bad." Still, Grange added, they will need earlier bottling than the '99s or '98s: the top '98s got an elevage of 26 months and the '99s 24 months, but the 2000s will be bottled after just 15 months. Grange finds the '98s especially true to their sites, while he considers the '99s the best vintage for the Northern Rhone since 1990. The house's top 1999 cuvees parcellaires showed spectacularly in November.

Director/enologist Jacques Grange initially felt the young 2000s were fine if a bit diluted by high yields, with the tannins not quite ripe enough. "Until September of this year I thought the red wines lacked concentration and structure compared to our region's wines, but now I find that they have good balance, finesse and purity," he explained. "And when you compare them to syrah from elsewhere around the world, they're not so bad." Still, Grange added, they will need earlier bottling than the '99s or '98s: the top '98s got an elevage of 26 months and the '99s 24 months, but the 2000s will be bottled after just 15 months. Grange finds the '98s especially true to their sites, while he considers the '99s the best vintage for the Northern Rhone since 1990. The house's top 1999 cuvees parcellaires showed spectacularly in November.

In the absence of director/enologist Jacques Grange, who was out of the country during my days in the Hermitage area, I was able to taste only a limited selection of wines from the '98 vintage, as well as a few samples of '99. Grange declined to prepare samples of his 1999 cuvees parcellaires as in a few cases the final blends for these cru bottlings had not been made and in others the wines had recently been racked. Grange has revitalized this old house since taking over in '97, but 1998 was the breakout vintage for Delas, as many of the company old oak foudres were replaced before the latter harvest. Grange gives most of his red wines a bit of pre-fermentation cold soak to obtain greater texture and flavor, and has increasingly carried out the malolactic fermentations in barriques which has helped to integrate the wines' wood component and achieve more opulence. Among the wines I sampled in November were several dense, powerfully structured reds that augur well for the continued improvement of this house.

Under the direction of enologist Jacques Grange, who took over in 1997 following stints with Michel Chapoutier and Jean-Luc Colombo, Delas constructed a new cuverie at their industrial-looking base outside St. Jean de Muzol in time for the '99 harvest. The house can now use gravity to put their grapes into their new open-top concrete fermenters, in which the must takes longer to heat up but then retains heat better, according to Grange. Pigeage and remontage are carried out twice daily. Since '97, Grange has done a three-to-four-day cold maceration prior to the onset of fermentation, which he believes has given the wines more flesh and opulence. Cuvaison varies according to the vintage and wine: from 14 days for the Crozes-Hermitage in '98 to 24 days for the Hermitage. Grange experimented with malolactic fermentation in barriques with the '97 Saint-Joseph and has since then adopted this approach for several of his other reds. The house rotates one-quarter of its barrels each year (actually 50 of 150 are now new, due to recent purchases of new oak to replace the old foudres Grange eliminated), as Grange does not like oaky wines. x000D x000D x000D x000D Grange describes his '98s as chewier than the '97s, with a lot of tannins. They are now a bit shy and retiring, and their aromas are developing slowly. Based on the handful of powerful, aromatically precise wines I sampled from barrel, 1998 promises to be the comeback vintage for this old house. However, I was not able to taste Delas's numerous cru bottlings, as they had not yet been assembled. At every racking, Grange told me, lesser barrels may be declassified, so any early look at a likely special cuvee would not be representative of the wine actually bottled. I also missed a few of the limited '97 bottlings, as the house was not adequately prepared for my visit, and bottled wines are kept elsewhere. A number of '97s I did taste were marred by a disturbing middle-palate dryness or greenness-characteristics I did not notice in the '98s I sampled from barrel.

I was fortunate to enjoy dozens of fantastic meals, casual as well as over-the-top, indulgent and gastronomic, as well as literally hundreds of superb wines, ranging from remarkable values to rarities this year, many of which will likely never pass my lips again. Choosing which ones were “best” is, frankly, impossible but here is a highly pared down selection of those meals and wines that made some of the strongest and most lasting impressions on me in 2018.